Kurama of Silkwood
by mintry1295
Summary: Kurama Naruto formerly Uzumaki was thrown out of Konoha because of nearly killing the precious Uchiha but Naruto was more than happy to leave. After merging with the Kyuubi, he found a home in Suna but a request from the Kazekage led him to discover an entirely new world where he was accepted and appreciated. Hanyou/Half-demon!Naruto SessxNar malexmale
1. The Request

**EDIT (please read)**

**mint:** Hello, a lot of people are asking me about whether this story is a yaoi/slash/malexmale story or not so I have inluded it in the story summary. Sesshoumaru is male in the story as well as Naruto so yes, it is a malexmale story. I apologize if I have upset anyone regarding this matter and I guess I am partly at fault. I assumed that unless specified, characters are understood to be the same gender as they appear in their respective manga/anime.

* * *

mint: Hey guys, I'm here with another story with a pairing that has been haunting me in my sleep ever since I thought of it, SesshoumaruxNaruto. I just can't find enough stories on this pairing so I finally decided on writing one.

There are a few things that I've twisted a little bit in order to make my story work:

(1) I can't find a consistent map of the Naruto world so because of that, I will only consider the City of Roran and Sunagakure as the major human settlements in the Land of Wind. (It's important later) Since the Wind Country is mostly a desert, I assume that there would be smaller human settlements only in oases. (2) I need a separate country where the 'Inuyasha world' will take place. In order to not confuse it with the Demon Country in the anime, I decided that I will name it Fiend Country (there aren't a lot of synonyms for demon). The Fiend Country will be a huge separate landmass far into the west of Wind Country (3) The Wind Country is connected to four countries according to Naruto wikia, one we don't know, second the country containing Ishigakure, third the country containing Amegakure, and fourth the River country. Other than these four, I will assume that there is no other land mass connecting to the Wind Country and that the rest will be surrounded by sea.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Inuyasha are not mine.

* * *

CHAPTER ONE: THE REQUEST

* * *

"Ah Suna, how I miss you," A teen muttered to himself, his long blonde hair billowing softly in the desert wind as he looked at the sand-colored gates of the village.

"Kurama-sama, welcome back," the gate guard greeted the blonde.

The blonde nearly pouted at the formality, "Shin, how many times have I told you to call me Naruto,"

"I've lost count Kurama-sama. But this is for safety purposes,"

Safety purposes, yes, he knew that all too well. Knowing that the issue was a lost cause, the teen named Kurama Naruto let it drop and just rolled his eyes to show his displeasure. Besides, it wouldn't do well for the Kazekage's 'cousin' to be caught fighting with a gate guard.

"Oh Kurama-sama is back," A villager said and soon enough a chain of his name erupted from the villagers, greeting him from his long trip. All the while, the gate guard named Shin snickered softly in the background at the young man's predicament.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh at my misfortune you traitor," he mumbled quietly, just enough for the other to hear before entering the village.

If there is one thing Naruto dislikes about being back in Suna, it's their reception to him. He supposed it came with the title he now holds. Being part of the 'royal family' does have its perks but since the other three members of the family are shinobi, the civilian villagers, and sometimes even the shinobi ones just can't have the same level of familiarity with his 'cousins' that they have with him. He is after all registered as a civilian, but only on papers of course.

He let his feet guide him to the familiar route to the Kazekage tower, a sphere-shaped building in Suna, and where one of his 'cousins' is probably drowning himself in his paperwork.

"Good morning, Kurama-sama. Kazekage-sama is free right now," The secretary outside the room of the Kazekage smiled at him.

"Thank you,"

The Kazekage's office is not a very lavish place. Shinobis are expected to stand or kneel – depends on the shinobi – before the Kazekage so chairs or a sofa was absent besides the one that the Kage is using. There's a desk and some plants, other than that, the room isn't much to look at.

"You know, I'm still amazed at how you keep your paperwork to a minimum. I remember the old man and the old hag always ranting about it," Naruto said as he walked in the room.

True enough, there were only a few papers on top of the Kazekage's desk which one of them he was currently signing.

"Why are you wondering? It's your favourite jutsu," The red-head Kazekage said, still signing the document in his hands.

"And I'm still wondering why the Third and the Fifth never thought of that,"

The Kazekage set the document he was holding aside and faced Naruto, "So, what happened?"

Naruto let go of his casual bearing and stood in place with his feet together, back straight and arms on his sides, "Well, there wasn't much damage, at least to us that is. They really were doing illegal business so I just sent them back to their village, with some evidence. I suspect a letter of apology in two to three days' time," He reported formally.

"Well, that solves that. Thank you Naruto,"

"You're welcome, Gaara,"

The red-head turned his chair around and glanced outside the round windows of the office seemingly forgetting about his companion.

"Gaara, is there something wrong? You haven't dismissed me yet," Naruto moved closer to the Kazekage until he was directly in front of his desk.

Gaara relaxed to his chair and sighed, "There is something I hope you could help me with Naruto,"

Naruto almost frowned at the grave tone the red-head had switch into.

"Well, what is it?"

"Do you remember when you fixed my seal?" Gaara asked.

"Yes,"

Oh, he remembered it alright and it also made him remember what happened before it. When Konoha had forsaken him.

* * *

_FLASHBACK_

_It was right after the retrieval mission of one Uchiha Sasuke that the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade issued when it happened. Kurama Naruto who was Uzumaki Naruto at that time fought with his 'friend' for him to come back to Konoha and Naruto actually succeeded. Both were injured badly with Naruto having the worst of it but because of his 'guest', by the time they reached Konoha, he wasn't as badly beaten as he had been. Of course, the people of Konoha misunderstood this._

_Once he gave them Sasuke, they immediately shouted and berated at him for nearly killing their precious Uchiha when said Uchiha didn't do anything to him. Of course, since he was a little healed already _–_ though still badly injured; a normal person wouldn't even be able to walk let alone stand if they had Natuto's injuries _–_ his reasoning was met with closed minds. His drastic wounds, the proof that Sasuke was the one that nearly killed him, have toned down a little. Nobody was there to protect him and stood for him because his friends were all in the infirmary already probably with the Hokage. Sakura was there but she just glared at him the whole time, such a great friend she is._

"_Get out here you Demon!"_

_Their voices rang harshly in Naruto's ears but he wasn't stupid. He knew that from that moment, when the people actually told him to leave, that Konoha was no longer a home. He tried for a very long time to fit in around Konoha and prove himself but it seems that no matter what he did, he will always be 'the demon'. It wasn't as if the crowd will even let him enter the village anyway so he did the only thing he could do at the moment, one that he never thought he would do, leave Konoha. The moment he turned his back from the crowd, the people shouted in joy and still yelled at him to leave at the same time. Naruto didn't feel much about leaving. He thought he would be sad, depressed but he felt nothing. He did feel a little sad about leaving his friends and Grandma Tsunade and the Pervy Sage but he continued walking away from the village without even looking back once, his hands tucked in his pockets._

_END FLASHBACK_

* * *

Since then, Naruto had been wandering alone. He travelled in non-shinobi villages in henge and learned as much as he can. He studied for survival and when he was running out of villages, the nine-tailed fox Kurama sealed inside him suggested that they merge.

* * *

_FLASHBACK_

'_**Kit.'**_

'_What is it Kurama?'_

_Naruto and the demon fox Kurama became on good terms once he left the village. Kurama would alert Naruto of any approaching danger or Konoha ANBU that seemed hell bent on finding him. It was probably the Hokage's instructions but Naruto had made up his mind to not step foot on Konoha again, well give or take some years. He wasn't keen on forgiving that village yet._

'_**We're gonna run out towns to go to in this rate and you haven't learned much still,'**_

'_What do you propose we do?' Naruto asked with a frown._

_Of course he knew. They were running out of grounds fast. It just so happen that the village he is currently in even have a library and most of the towns don't have one._

'_**How about we fuse?'**_

'_Fuse? What do you mean?'_

'_**Basically, we'll become one. There's no Naruto and Kurama anymore. You would be a combination of both. But you were born human, we cannot erase that so you cannot become a full demon. You'll be a half-demon then,'**_

'_What's this got to do with our previous topic?' Naruto asked calmly. Travelling around by himself had forced him to abandon his childish ways and become mature faster, much to the joy of the fox._

'_**Fox demons have three governing elements: Fire, Nature, and Illusions. With Fox Illusions, that uses demon energy, you can create a henge that will not be detected by ninja.'**_

' …'

'_**Well?'**_

'_I admit, it is a good idea. But this process will surely leak some of my or your chakra signature and that would not be good. Although the number of Konoha ninja tailing after our traces have decreased, they will surely recognize it.'_

'_**Leave that to me,'**_

_END FLASHBACK_

* * *

The transformation process was an experience Naruto wished he would forget. Thanks to old seals that Kurama knew, the process never alerted anyone but it hurt. It hurt a lot. A lot of his bones and body structure changed as well as his appearance. His hair grew long, his whiskers more pronounced, two fox ears in his head (it still felt weird not feeling his ears at the sides of his face) and nine long tails fanned behind him. The fox was blubbering with joy once he counted his tails. Apparently the appearance of the complete set of tails indicated he was very powerful. Kurama said he expected Naruto to grow only two of them, initially of course. Oh yes, Kurama was still there but he was only a voice, his conscience as Naruto would say but Kurama preferred the term inner demon. He uses fox illusions to hide his 'extra appendages' including the whisker marks whenever he's in a village and like Kurama said, he was undetected letting him travel to the Shinobi villages and learning more and training more than he could. Since then, Naruto decided on using the name Kurama Naruto as Uzumaki Naruto would have stood out.

After a few years of adapting with his new body, Naruto finally paid Gaara a visit.

* * *

_FLASHBACK_

"_You're saying you merged with the demon fox?" Kankuro asked bewildered._

"_Yes, you asked that for the third time already," Naruto exasperatedly answered._

"_And Konoha just threw you out! How dare them!" Temari shouted at the top of her lungs. This was the guy that made her little brother change and made them a family again. To her, Naruto was a blessing._

"_Well, yeah,"_

"_Can he stay here?" Kankuro asked his little brother who was already the Kazekage at that point, much to Naruto's chagrin._

"_What?!" Naruto only shouted._

"_Only if he wants to," Gaara said calmly though he secretly hoped his friend would agree._

"_Well I-" Naruto looked at the three siblings whose eyes continued to be fixed on him._

"_Fine, but you gotta let me do something in return,"_

"_Nonsense, you are my brother's friend Naruto. We would be delighted to welcome you in Suna," Temari said however the blonde was not paying attention and was still thinking hard about 'doing something in return'._

"_Naruto, it's fi-"_

"_How about I fix your seal for you?"_

_END FLASHBACK_

* * *

The sand siblings did not just let him stay in Suna after that, the three adopted him into the family resulting in his 'cousin' status. The council were all up for it though of course they failed to mention about Naruto being a half-demon to them. The shinobi of the sand were delighted as well for they all knew Naruto as the 'hero-who-made-Gaara-sane' and the Kazekage made it a law for all shinobi not to utter a word about Kurama Naruto being Uzumaki Naruto as well in order to protect him from Konoha. Since Konoha and Suna were allies, Naruto either had to be hidden in the Kazekage compound whenever a messenger from Konoha arrives or away from Suna in a secret mission (since he was not supposed to be a shinobi) whenever said messenger happens to be Hyuuga.

Back to the situation at hand…

"Ever since you fixed the seal, I've been feeling something in the far edges of the Wind Country. It is very subtle, I can barely feel it but I'm convinced it's there,"

Naruto closed his eyes and concentrated hard on the natural environment. Surely he must have felt it before?

"Naruto?"

"Yeah, I feel it. It's very faint but I wonder why I haven't noticed it before?" frowned the blonde.

"It's probably because you don't stay for a long period of time. You're always on the move Naruto and probably causing trouble. I on the other hand stay here most of the time doing nothing but paperwork,"

The blonde smiled sheepishly. "Well, if you say it like that…"

"It's probably because of our demons that we feel it. I don't know about the other jinchuurikis though,"

"Do you want me to check it out?"

Green eyes focused themselves on the blonde's face not hiding the worry that he felt for his friend.

"Gaara, don't worry about me. If I can't do it, I promise I'll go back as soon as I can,"

"I can't help but worry about you," The red-head stared as his friend and Naruto stared back.

After a few seconds, Gaara broke the connection and sighed.

"Alright you win. But promise me to come back as soon as you can,"

"I promise,"

* * *

That being said, Naruto travelled on the big expanse of desert of the Wind Country west of Suna. He didn't know where to go and basically just followed the weird pulse of… something in the borders of land. The trip was challenging because of the harsh conditions and Naruto had to take provisions with him in this trip. He would usually just hunt food but it was the desert and not the forest that he went to; there isn't much wild game in the desert. He thankfully passed through one or two oases and stocked up on food.

After days of travelling and seeing endless sand, Naruto made it to the edge of the desert. Rocks and mountains greeted the blonde but not much forest and wildlife to hunt on. Because of this, Naruto decided on heading towards the City of Ronan first to stock up on provisions once again. He also needed to send word to the Kazekage that he was alright. The blonde would usually send a messenger toad for this purpose but ever since he left Konoha, he had refrained using the toads. Naruto wasn't quite keen on seeing any Konoha nin at the present and the toads could give away his location, no matter how much he trusts them. So instead of toads, he opted for the old-fashioned messenger birds that can be rented in every major village.

Once everything was set, Naruto set out once again to find the source of the energy. It was getting stronger as he travelled south of Ronan so he deduced that he was on the right path. After another 3 days of travelling, he found the origin. It was ordinary, almost too plain as he approached the base of the mountain. He approached the rocky base of the mountain and carefully touched the biggest stone there. It was nothing out of the ordinary, the bushes around it were the same, the soil, the rocks but the origin was there, or rather, behind it.

'_What do you think?'_ Naruto asked his inner demon for he was out of ideas.

'_**Well… There is something. It's almost like a seal. Do you think your blood will work?'**_

'_Why would my blood work?'_

'_**It's just a guess. But since only you and the red-head can feel it, maybe it has something to do with you being jinchuuriki,'**_

'_Well, it's worth a try,'_

With that, Naruto bit his thumb, the same way before a summoning, and smeared it across the rock. The blonde waited for something, anything but nothing.

"Well, I have to think of- whoa!"

The half-demon was thrown back in surprise as the blood absorbed itself on the rock and the boulder actually moved aside to reveal a dark cave.

"Am I supposed to enter that?" Naruto asked to no one in particular, eyeing the dark passage.

'_**Just go in already,'**_

"Fine, fine,"

The blonde kitsune entered the cave but was surprised as a loud thud resounded behind him and the light suddenly disappeared. The rock had returned itself.

"Wait! Move you damn rock! How am I supposed to get back?!" Naruto shouted and pounded against the rock.

Being in a dark place didn't affect him. Because of his half-demon heritage, he could see a little in the dark, however, he doesn't appreciate being stuck in a cave.

"What the-"

Naruto had to close his eyes as a blinding light registered in his peripheral vision. Fortunately, he got his back turned from it, as he was still pounding at the entrance, since he was positive he could've gone blind from its intensity. The light quickly toned down and the blonde turned his head to look. Inside, there was a flat stone disk embedded in the middle of the small cave. It was black as night and he didn't know what it was but that was not the point. The light was floating upwards from the outline of the disk, making a small open cylinder of light that behaves in a manner similar to the light curtains he once saw in his travels in the Northern countries. The light was not still, more like dancing.

"What is that?"

Naruto carefully approached the light taking small steps as he go, after all, as he still doesn't know what those are, it would be a good idea to practice caution. In front of the light, the Kitsune couldn't help but marvel at its beauty as he slowly tried to touch the light. He didn't know what to expect but was nonetheless surprised when the light only felt like wind caressing his skin.

'_What do you think it is?'_

'_**I don't know. But this is what you were looking for,'**_

'_Hey look there are markings in the stone,'_

The blonde stepped closer to the disk stone and observed the different markings engraved on it. The patterns were unknown to Naruto but there were whimsical almost beautiful even. In his trance he didn't notice that he had already stepped inside the circle.

"WHOA!"

The patterns in the disk stone glowed in front of Naruto's eyes and he suddenly felt a weird light-headed feeling the brought him to his knees.

"W-what was that?" Naruto frowned.

The sensation he felt was unlike anything he ever experienced. It didn't hurt or anything, it was more of a surprising feeling. He felt light. Naruto imagined that that must be what flying feels like.

"Wait a minute," Naruto looked around the cave once he was back to his wits. It was different.

The cave was dim but Naruto's senses cannot be wrong. This cave is different from the one he was in earlier. The subtle change in the shape, scent and the feel was different from earlier. He couldn't have teleported… right?

"Okay… this is weird,"

'_**Gawking there would not do anything,'**_

'_Hey! I needed some time to… recover!'_

'…_**that was lame,'**_

'_Hmph. Sure, be that way,'_

Naruto, despite arguing with Kurama's voice, followed its advice and stepped out of the disk stone. As soon as his feet left the stone, an opening suddenly appeared in front of him blinding him temporarily by the light.

"Ah, that surprised me!"

Naruto took a deep breath and stepped towards the opening readying himself physically and mentally to whatever was outside.

* * *

mint: Well, that was rather long for a change...


	2. Fiend Country

mint: Hello everyone! I apologize that it took me so long to update but being a college student is really taking its toll on me. I'm actually quite surprised that the latest chapter I updated (not this story) is still in my Doc Manager. I guess that actually means that I update earlier now compared to before. Anyway, here is the second chapter :D

Thank you for everyone who reviewed, I assure you I read every single one of them.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Inuyasha are not mine.

* * *

CHAPTER TWO: THE FIEND COUNTRY

* * *

"Okay…"

Naruto looked around the unknown place. He was surprised at the abundance of trees as he was somehow expecting it to look like… the other side, full of rocks and stones. Judging just from the scent of the surroundings, the place was uninhabited by humans but there was something else troubling him, it smelled strongly of spiders and the forest was covered in strands of spider web as well. Not that he was afraid of spiders of course, but the scent was too strong. It was as if the whole forest was covered head to foot with spiders which was most likely since the place was covered in spider web and he had to admit, that was creepy.

"HAH!" A forceful voice rang out in the forest, almost like a battle cry.

Naruto nearly jumped in surprise before tensing, his body ready to pounce. He was sure there were no humans around, he could smell it but his ears would not betray him. Slowly and silently, the fox stalked in the direction of the voice and at the same time watching his back. He could hear small noises, something akin to crawling and it was following him. However since it hasn't attacked him, Naruto did nothing to harm or stop whatever it was.

"Die!"

There in the clearing the blonde saw someone or something. It was definitely alive, it was shouting quite loudly after all but still he stared at the being like it was something out of this world. The… thing was big, bulky and muscular, Naruto could safely assume that it was twice as large as he is. Its skin was dark brown similar to the color of the bark of an oak tree but what surprised him the most was the pair of black horns in its head and the long slim tail on its lower back. It looked like a cross between a bull and a human and it looked weird and somewhat deformed.

"Die!"

Naruto nearly gasped as the thing punched and dismembered a rather large spider in front of him. The spider was huge but looked small compared to its attacker. Naruto's ears flattened in his head as he heard the pained screech of the spider. Deciding that the spider was the victim and the fact that the place is crawling with spiders, he moved to save the it from the hands of its attacker.

"Hey you!"

The half-bull half-human looked at him.

"A fox. I never thought I would be this lucky," That sentence alone made Naruto cringe in disgust.

"What did the spider ever do to you?!"

The other abandoned the spider and faced him completely, "I want their high-priced spider silk and if you want to stop me then you need to go as well!"

Sensing the attack miles away, Naruto quickly jumped out of the way.

"Come back here!"

The bull tried to follow but was stuck in place as a plant quickly crawled its way up in his legs.

"Wha-"

He struggled desperately as the vines surrounded his body, binding him and twisting his limbs in impossible angles. Naruto reappeared in front of the other his lips forming a slight smirk as he watched the light leave the creature's eyes with a last sickening crunch. With its work done, the vines retreated back to the ground like a snake and dropped its load in a boneless heap.

"All bark and no bite," Naruto murmured to himself.

'_**Naruto… you forgot the spider,'**_ As soon as his inner demon said it, the sound of thousands of feet skittering in the ground entered Naruto's hearing.

Naruto was on his guard but maintained a composed and seemingly relaxed pose. He observed as spiders obtained his kill quickly spun it with their web until it looked like a cocoon and dragged it off to somewhere he wouldn't mind not knowing about. The spiders encircled him though a good 3 feet away, their feet making small chittering noises as it hits the ground. Slowly, the spiders in front of Naruto parted and gave way to an even larger spider though not taller than the blonde.

"**You helped us,"** a deep, yet feminine voice echoed in the woods leaving Naruto shocked.

"W-wait… Who- Are you the one talking to me?" He asked pointing to the newly arrived one.

The spider let out a sound akin to a chuckle, **"Yes. My name is Ainara, the leader of this colony of Spider Demon. And you are?"**

'_Did she said Demon?!'/__**'Did she said Demon?!' **_Naruto and his inner demon thought at the same time. He managed to collect his wits (and manners) before introducing himself.

"Naruto. Kurama Naruto. Um. Ainara… Did you say demon?" The blonde couldn't help but add.

Another deep chuckle came from the spider. It seems that she was expecting the question.

"**Kurama Naruto. It is a long tale. Take a seat for this will take a long while,"**

Naruto untrustingly let his eyes scan his surroundings and this did not escape the spider's eyes.

"**Maybe it would be better if…"**

The large spider then transformed in front of Naruto's eyes. There was no flash of light, nor sound, just a quick morph to a human shape. A few seconds later, an old woman was standing in front of him, dressed in a formal black kimono.

"D-did you just-" Naruto stood gobsmacked by what just happened.

"Yes, now, I suggest we both sit down child. It's been a while since I've used this form after all," Ainara walked towards a huge rock and sat there while Naruto just followed silently, his brain still catching up with the events.

"The cave that you came from child is magical. It transports beings from the other side to here and here to the other side."

The blonde already had a lot of question popping in his mind, but he let the old woman/spider continue.

"A story passed down in our colony says that once long ago, a powerful demon had wandered into the cave and went to the other side, a land populated only by humans but was constantly at war. The demon was weak, near dying as it was almost defeated in battle and upon arriving at the other side marvelled at the life force freely flowing in the ground. That life force was blood, human blood shed from the wars plaguing the country."

"The demon fed on the life force but did not regain his strength for his body was too wounded, and too damaged. He did not want to die and with the last of his powers, transformed himself into a tree and continued to live in this way absorbing the blood shed by war, waiting for a body to absorb, possess or contain,"

"The demon tree was later regarded as a holy being and once every millennium, it would bore a fruit which the humans were strictly forbidden to eat. A princess however ate the fruit and gained powers, powers similar to the demon and she ended the constant wars. She was regarded as a goddess,"

"The demon slowly fed the princess feelings of ill will and she later ruled the lands by force keeping her powers all to herself and believing that she was the only who had the right to wield it. When she bore two sons, she had snapped for they had inherited her powers and the demon was finally able to fully control the princess, regaining his original body. The demon with its massive ten tails ravaged the land until the princess' sons defeated it in battle,"

"Because of the destruction caused by the demon in the other side, we were tasked to guard the cave while at the same time hiding its location so that no demon may again wander there,"

The old lady looked at Naruto who was thinking deeply.

'_**What she said actually fits the story we've read about,' **_The blonde's inner demon said.

'_Yeah… except the demon part… the story is practically the same,'_

"Naruto-kun was it?" The old spider lady's voice stopped his train of thought, "You are a half-demon yet there are no demons in your lands, this we are sure. Tell me how come you are one?"

There was no malice in her words, only curiosity, and so Naruto explained, "You remember the story? About the brothers defeating the demon? Well it's said that they didn't really killed it, only sealed within one of the brothers. When he was nearing his end, the brother that contained the youkai split his energy into nine beings or demons if you will while its shell and mind was sealed by the other brother. One of the nine was sealed inside me and we had merged way back,"

The old woman felt relieved that at least the mind of the demon was sealed away.

"Well, young Naruto, we are in your debt. Still, I would like to know how you came upon the cave,"

Naruto then relayed the story of how the Kazekage asked him to check the place. After a few minutes of explanation, Naruto noticed the darkening of the sky and informed the spider woman of his departure.

"I need to go now. It's getting dark, also, now that I know what is in here, I can now report back to Gaara," he said.

The old spider lady did not stand up from her seat and asked, "Naruto-kun, do you and your friend wish to keep this place a secret?"

"Of course kumo-baabaa! This place is too dangerous anyway, no offence,"

"None taken but may I suggest something?" Naruto looked at the old lady to indicate he was listening.

"We spider youkai, as much as I hate to admit it are becoming weaker and there might come a time where we might fail in our task. Is it possible if we can strike a deal with you young Naruto?"

Naruto frowned a bit, "It depends kumo-baabaa. I have to tell it to Gaara first,"

"That is fine. I would just like to suggest if it is possible for you to live here?"

A long period of silence followed after that statement.

"What?!" Naruto's voice echoed in the forest.

"Of course, in exchange for your protection, we would gladly give you our prized spider silk," she smiled.

The blonde was silent for a while, thinking of the pros and cons of the offer. It is a good offer, he gets to train, and as much as he loves Suna, it's not a place he can actually call home. The only problem was that the cave was far from Suna and as much as he wanted to stay, he still wants to help Gaara sort out problems, maybe lessen his paperwork a little.

'_**The racoon kid would probably agree,'**_

'_I know. That's what I'm worried about,'_

"I'll have to tell Gaara. I'll be back baabaa,"

* * *

Kumo-baabaa – I believe it translates to spider grandma

mint: I initially planned on the leader being genderless but it became female as I was typing it. I then remembered Jorogumo which is a spider woman youkai and it further cemented my decision to make the leader a female. I made her an old woman because I want her to be Naruto's guidance and also a bit of mother (or grandmother) figure. Kind of like Kaede to Inuyasha.

Some trivia: Ainara is arania spelled backwards which I got from the Harry Potter spell Arania Exumai. Arania came from the Latin word araneus, meaning "spider".


	3. The Dragon Appears

mint: Hello once more and welcome to chapter 3! I actually wrote part of this during Christmas and its May now *bangs head on the wall* Sorry… I was really busy with school for the past few months. Also, I don't know if I mentioned it but the idea for the cave is slightly borrowed from Final Fantasy IX's Fossil Roo – a tunnel which connects the Mist Continent to the Outer Continent.

It took such a long time to write this, partly because of my school work load and partly because, I can't seem to find out how to introduce this OC character that will appear in this chapter. I typed the whole thing and then deleted it because it wasn't working for me, hopefully, it's better now.

Thank you for all your lovely reviews! I read all of them don't worry! :D

Disclaimer: Naruto and Inuyasha are not mine. Also, slight crossover with Gathering Blue and Messenger (books which I also don't own). You'll understand later.

* * *

CHAPTER THREE: THE DRAGON APPEARS

* * *

Naruto wiped the sweat that covered his forehead as he stared at the cottage he built – or rather grew – at the mouth of the cave. He used his control over nature to literally grow a small house. If you can imagine thick vines and branches growing around a small house contouring and following its shape and then removing the house out of the picture, that's what Naruto's new home looked like. The empty structure began becoming more of a home as Naruto released scroll after scroll of necessities, clothes, furniture, weapons, utensils and other stuff that Temari insisted he bring. The most important items he brought were placed in a corner of his living room – a fan given by Temari which was mounted to the wall, a small fox-shaped puppet from Kankuro placed on top of a shallow rectangular glass container filled with sand courtesy of Gaara. The sand, being from Gaara's gourd and covered with his chakra, allowed the red-head to check Naruto from time to time by creating a sand eye. Only for a few minutes or so of course because of the hindrance brought about by the distance. Speaking of the three, Naruto remembered their conversation that led to his settling down in what they dubbed 'Fiend Country'.

* * *

_FLASHBACK_

"_But Gaara!"_

"_No buts Naruto. It is a good idea and it's the best for you," The redhead countered._

"_Naruto, we want you to be happy and free and we all know that you feel trapped in Suna," Temari threw in her own opinion._

_Naruto tried to think of a good excuse, "What would we say to the villagers?"_

"_That you settled down. Besides they all know you love nature and there's not much of that in desert," Kankuro shot down the idea._

"_If you're really having a hard time accepting this, then treat it as a mission. That it is your mission to help those spiders guard to portal," Gaara added._

_The blond fell silent for a minute, "Well… If you put it that way…"_

"_Okay it's settled then!" Temari smiled._

"_Wait but I haven't-" The glare that Temari sent him was enough to shut him up._

_END FLASHBACK_

* * *

He really should've known better. Once those three agree on something, which was rare in itself, there was nothing else he could do about it.

"Naruto-kun you still have to make your dyeing area," Ainara, the old spider brought Naruto out of his musings.

"Yes, thank you baabaa,"

Why all the fuss about dyeing? Well, Naruto don't really know what to do with spider silk. Ainara said he could do anything with it, even sell it since he doesn't have much money. It also seemed a waste if he would just sell it as it is so Naruto decided on weaving. He wasn't a weaver, not at all, and judging by his former dress code, he wasn't that good at putting colors together as well though he's a lot better now thanks to Temari burning all of his jumpsuits. He does have the theoretical knowledge of weaving and dyeing though from all the books that he'd read. Truthfully speaking, Naruto is apprehensive about the random idea but it was worth a shot. Besides, it's a good past-time since he's basically not going to do anything but guard the cave. Might as well make the most of his free time right?

* * *

Two years later

* * *

In Fiend Country, there is a forest in the south known throughout the lands. The forest was covered head to toe with spider web, the trees look dark and grim, over-all not really inviting and earned the name 'Silkwood'. Deep inside the seemingly dead forest, was a small cot surrounded by a garden and green foliage. Smoke can be seen rising from the house's 'chimney' and a half-demon fox sat outside tending flowers and plants. Beside the house was a kitchen, fireplaces made of stone and earth and over them huge pots upon pots of clay, some bubbling, some just covered. A drying area in front of the kitchen had been set up, strings of colored silk threads already hanging on one and on the other, leaves and flowers were tied securely in place.

"Good morning Naruto," A voice drifted in the clearing making the fox look up.

He took a look at the elder and smiled," You're finally up baabaa? I'll make tea for you,"

"Ah, thank you child,"

The old lady sat down on one of the chairs outside Naruto's flower garden and smiled. Ainara, being the leader – the strongest spider demon in the colony, had always taken care of her fellow spiders. Spider demons don't just take on a human form you see, that privilege is only for the leader. So now, someone taking care of her is a very new concept to the old spider and she was grateful to the fox for it especially now that she was growing old.

"Here you go," Naruto appeared beside Ainara, a cup of green tea in hand.

But that morning, their usual morning was cut short when a young spider scurried near them and started chittering away. Ainara's usually calm face was replaced with shock and then determination.

Naruto looked confused for he could not understand a thing, "What's wrong?"

"A demon is entering the forest again,"

* * *

Masahide is a curious demon, it is one of the things his wife Tsuyuki love and hate about him at the same time. It developed when he was a child because of boredom for his parents were strict and never let him out of their dwelling. He was already 54 years old when he was allowed to roam their mountain – but only their mountain. He was educated of course but he wanted to experience – to feel, taste, hear and smell – all the things he was seeing for the first time even if he messes up. Those were accidents though, he assured himself. How could he know that he wasn't supposed to struggle when caught in a Devil's Trap*? He nearly killed himself back then if it weren't for his parents.

Recently, a rumor started to spread about a mysterious demon protecting the Silkwood Forest. The forest which seems to sit on the edge of the world, was not often visited by demons. One, it was quite far, not far for a demon of course, but quite troublesome so most don't bother. And two, the spiders there were really vicious. Masahide heard that those who went inside either came out near-dying or did not come back at all. Spider silk may be obtained by other means, trading or obtaining from other spider demon colonies though he had heard a rumor that the spider silk quality given by the spiders in Silkwood was much greater than the others.

"Okay in we go,"

His first step into the forest was not bad, pretty boring actually. It was like… well, walking through a forest. After a few minutes though, he gradually felt a slight change in the atmosphere. The forest became less and less inviting as he went on. Masahide felt an invisible weight on his whole body, his steps felt heavy though he still walked like normal; his chest felt constricted but his breathing was perfectly normal – it was bizarre. He hasn't seen any spiders yet which was a miracle in itself. He thought the whole place was crawling with them.

The next unusual happening, he hardly recognized at first. Oh, he had noticed that the forest was getting narrower, more vines, shrubs and web, which were beginning to annoy him since they tend tangle in his horns but he thought he was just getting deeper into the woods. He was right of course but wrong at the same time. The first time he saw it, he could hardly believe it. Masahide hadn't meant to look in that direction but he felt strange, a forewarning, he decided. Then he saw it, the twig of a tree straightening itself and ended up grazing his bare arm. Slowly, but surely, a wide mischievous grin found itself in his face. Things were getting a bit interesting.

* * *

"Whoops, that was a close one," Masahide said as he jumped away from a flinging thorny vine.

The forest was being very violent with him. The trees were almost impossible to navigate, the bushes were overgrown and covered with thorns, the thick fog in the air made it hard to breathe and he was positive that the pus seeping down from the tree branches above were enough to eat away skin. Fortunately for him though, dragon scales were pretty immune to most harmful substances and it seems that it includes that pus, whatever that was.

"Whoa!" A black blur missed the demon by a few inches.

The dragon followed the black blur with his eyes and saw a spider land gracefully on the ground, its body tense and kept low to the ground ready to attack. Behind it, Masahide saw more of the critters coming out from the shadows and nicks of the trees. One after the other, the not-so-little spiders accumulated fast in front of his eyes and while they are relatively weak, it's hard to handle them all at once. Not to mention the forest is out for his blood as it is.

"This is bad,"

Masahide ran swiftly, almost gliding into the air with dozens or hundreds of spiders hot on his trail. Of course he could fly up and just take a shortcut in the sky but that wouldn't give the experience that he wanted. Not to mention that the tree branches of one tree to the other were already tightly intertwined effectively trapping him inside. There was no other way to go but forward.

"Why is this forest so damn long?" The dragon muttered to himself as he evaded another vine that whipped too close to his face. It was oozing with some purple-colored liquid too which he was sure couldn't be good.

"Ah.. light," Finally, there it was, the light surprised him for a little bit seeing that he had spent too long in the darkness of the forest.

When Masahide finally stumbled into the clearing, he was most surprised to see a young hanyou fox looking at him with hard but curious eyes.

"Who are you?" The fox asked with distrust.

He stood there for a few seconds before realizing the question and he quickly went out of from his stupor, "Masahide's the name,"

The fox only lifted an eyebrow in response, "And?"

"And… what?"

The blonde sighed, "What do you want?"

"Ah so that's what you mean!" Understanding painted the dragon's face as he grinned sheepishly. "I was actually just curious about the rumoured protector of Silkwood,"

The other looked at him weirdly "That's it?" he asked dumbfounded.

"Well yes," The dragon tried to rub his neck but stopped halfway with a wince. In his arm was a long bloody gash that was starting to hurt especially after all the adrenaline had gone from his body.

The fox quickly approached his guest and took a look at his injuries. He was a little worse for wear but nothing too life-threatening. He did not smell any lies on the dragon as well so he had decided to trust him.

"I have nothing to give you other than heal your wounds," He muttered and motioned for the other to follow him, "It's Naruto by the way. Kurama Naruto,"

Masahide quickly shook his head, "No! no! You don't need to do that! It's all my fault anyways and I… uh… I'll just go home and fix myself up!"

"Uh, no. I don't think so. Just come inside and let me heal you," Naruto stubbornly said.

"But-"

"I suggest you just do what he says," A voice suddenly entered the conversation. Ainara emerged from Naruto's hut and approached the two.

"Baabaa!" Naruto exclaimed.

Ainara ignored Naruto for a while and looked at their guest, "I am Ainara and I suggest you accept Naruto's offer. You're going to be in a lot of pain if you don't get those wounds healed,"

Masahide looked at the fox and then to the old spider and between their two hard gazes, he decided that giving in would be much easier, "All right, all right,"

"Finally! Come inside then," Naruto smiled and led him inside "I'm really sorry about the attacks though, I thought you'd be one of those youkai who would like to steal the silk,"

"It's no big deal!" The dragon grinned. Ainara was not convinced however and poked the arm nearest to her.

"OW!"

The old spider scoffed, "Youngsters these days… Too much pride I say," And that even made Naruto more guilty.

"I know!" He suddenly exclaimed, "It's not much but I guess I can give you this!"

The fox quickly opened up a small wooden chest and held up a cream-almost gold colored haori** with a subtle river motif done in different shades of gray. Masahide on the other hand, nearly fainted at the sight of such a priceless piece of clothing.

* * *

*Devil's Trap – heavily based on Devil's Snare

_"Stop moving!" Hermione ordered them. "I know what this is — it's Devil's Snare!"_

Rowling, J. K. _Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone_. New York: A.A. Levine Books, 1998.

**Haori – a loose outer garment resembling a coat and extending to the knee and worn in Japan.

'Haori'. _Merriam-Webster_. Web. 9 May 2015.

mint:

Gathering Blue and Messenger are books by Lois Lowry. Gathering Blue tells the story of a young orphan girl Kira who was gifted with embroidery. I got the weaving idea from this book but instead of yarn, I replaced it with silk. The one that I've borrowed from Messenger is the Forest. I can't tell you exactly what Forest is but I think I can say that it gives out 'warnings' to people passing by it. The book describes one of the warnings like a twig slowly straightening withdrawing back and stabbing the person like a snake. If the Forest gave a warning, it means you cannot pass it anymore and failure to do so will lead to death. Of course, it is not my intention to borrow that part but the idea of a forest being sort of alive is the one I wanted plus the addition of spiders and webbings everywhere. It's like a cross between Forest (Messenger) and Mirkwood (The Hobbit series – the giant spiders part). There's a reason why I named it Silkwood you know hahaha.


	4. Human Transformation

mint: Someone asked what Naruto's current age is in this story.

CH 1:

Before fusing – 13

After Fusing – 15

Stay in Suna – 16-18

CH2:

Before time skip – 18

After time skip (currently) – 20

Thank you for all the reviews!

Sorry about taking so long to update. There's only one more semester till I graduate and my thesis is taking up a lot of my time. Please bear with me.

Disclaimer: Inuyasha and Naruto are not mine

* * *

EDIT: Sorry I did not notice that I uploaded the old version (which was shorter). It should be okay now.

* * *

CHAPTER FOUR: HUMAN TRANSFORMATION

* * *

"I'm sorry can you repeat that?" Naruto asked in a sickly sweet tone. Opposite to him, Masahide had broken out in cold sweat. The dragon looked at his mate but she continued on playing with their child, completely ignoring him.

"I kind of showed off the haori you gave me and maybe that's why a lot of demons are now trying to enter the forest?" He sheepishly answered.

Naruto wanted to hit him.

"Apologize properly,"Masahide's mate, a half-lizard half-spider youkai named Tsuyuki said in a no-nonsense tone.

The dragon quickly bowed in front of Naruto. "I apologize!"

Naruto looked at him and frowned. It wasn't like him to be mad at an honest mistake no matter how bad the outcome was for him. He supposed he was a bit flattered that his work was worth showing off to others.

He sighed, "It's not like I can do anything about it now..."

"Naruto-kun, as much as I don't like what my mate has done, perhaps you can perceive it in a positive light? You get free training and the spiders get their meal. No one says that you have to give away your work,"

Naruto's face scrunched up in thought, "Well… I guess so,"

The female picked up her child, a bubbly toddler named Eijiro with crimson hair that he inherited from his father, "We should go and eat in a while, dusk is almost upon us,"

Masahide promptly looked at the sky in attention, "Yes. I shall hunt us something to eat,"

"Thank you," Naruto smiled in appreciation. "I'm still annoyed at you though!"

"I said I was sorry!"

"Well, learn your lesson then," Tsuyuki said, "Now go, shoo!"

Naruto have never eaten meat ever since he arrived in this country. He could never travel out of the forest to hunt meat (animals inside the forest are for the spider colony) because if other demons found out, the forest could get attacked again. As such, Naruto survived mainly on eating berries and plants. It's been a few weeks since he had met Masahide and he promptly brought his wife and child one day. Tsuyuki then drilled it into his head that he needed meat for it was the way of the demons, one of the sure ways he could get stronger. Ainara was thankful for the two. She as well was starting to get worried about Naruto's health.

"Will you be staying the night?" Naruto asked Tsuyuki as he laid a thick rug down, a gift from the Sand siblings given by some high-ranking official of another country. It made a perfect mat for young little Eijiro to run around without the worries of getting his knee scraped if he falls.

"Yes," She answered seriously, "Today will be the start of weekly visits to get some meat in your diet,"

* * *

Naruto woke up in his bed the next morning feeling slightly uncomfortable. He shook his head a bit, trying to clear a weird buzzy feeling lingering in his hearing, like the uncomfortable feeling he got when he climbed a high mountain before. The action had no effect whatsoever and he was left still pondering on the feeling that something was different.

"What is wrong with my hearing today?" He grumbled and tried to grab one in his ear but his hand only met air.

His hand froze, "Wait, what?!"

The fox touched his head, blindly feeling for the pair of fox ears that were usually on his head, messing his hair in the process, but they were nowhere to be found. And so thinking of nothing else that he could do, he screamed.

"Naruto-kun!" Tsuyuki was at Naruto's room the second after she heard the blonde's scream. She moved so fast that she did not bother checking up on her mate - she knew he would eventually come as well as calm their son. The half could not help but feel close to the fox and was already starting to view him like a son. There she saw the young blonde pacing around his room in a half-panicked state.

"Tsuyuki-san! What's wrong with me?! My ears are not there, my claws are not here! What's happening?!" The blonde yelled while comically tugging at his hair in frustration.

Tsuyuki frowned. If her senses were correct, and she knew that they were, the being in front of her was complete and utterly human. However it also looked like Naruto - same blonde hair, same length even, same blue eyes, hell, even the same whisker markings. The only difference was the obviously missing tails and the pair of fox ears on his head which was replaced with a pair of human ears. Yes, it was Naruto alright albeit he smells different - like a human.

"Calm down Naruto-kun!" She said to the nearly hysterical hanyou. "And keep your voice down a bit!"

Though she said this, in her head, she was confused. How in the world had Naruto turned human?

"Calm down…" Naruto took deep breaths "I'm calm…"

"What's wrong?" Masahide's voice was heard from the door. There he was standing with his son in his arms followed closely by Ainara. Masahide narrowed his eyes in confusion "Is that-?"

The old spider gasped in shock, "Oh my"

"Naru-nii!" Eijiro all but struggled out of his father's arms and dived straight to the blond.

"Well, I guess that answers my question." Masahide muttered.

* * *

They moved to the small sitting room in Naruto's hut. The now-human blond winced as the small toddler in his arms finally noticed his lack of furry ears on his head and started to tug at his current human ears.

"Its fine." Naruto told Tsuyuki who was about to take the child from his grasp. He understood the child's curiosity.

"So um... Any theories?" Masahide asked about the problem at hand.

Tsuyuki was the first to speak, " Well, the only logical reason I can think of right now is that it has something to do with Naruto being a hanyou."

"The idea has merit. There were rumors of some form of weakness regarding half-breeds reaching my ears but since I do not go out of the forest, I can hardly confirm that this is it," Ainara said.

Masahide nodded in agreement, "I've heard of that as well but thought nothing of it before." He straightened his back against the wall he was leaning upon and scrunched his face in thought, "If this is truly this weakness, then it may have been a safely guarded secret. For survival and all."

Tsuyuki frowned. What her mate said made sense of course, but it doesn't help them in any way. If anything, it made everything much more complicated. "If that is true... Then the only way to find more information about this is-"

"To ask another hanyou." Naruto supplied, having arrived at the same conclusion.

Hanyous were exceedingly rare to find, Naruto knows that at least. There aren't many of them naturally - the hatred of most demons towards humans and the fear of most humans towards demons have made sure of that. There is also the fact the most demons hated half-breeds as much as they hated humans, or in some cases even more. This resulted in half-breeds being eliminated early in their lives especially without the supervision of their demon parent. As such, finding other half-breeds in order to learn about what Naruto was experiencing would be quite a challenge.

"Isn't the Heir of the West a hanyou?" Masahide asked.

"The Heir? You mean Lord Inuyasha? Defeater of Naraku?"

"Oh that's right. Baabaa told me about it. The half-inuyokai, brother to Lord Sesshoumaru?" Naruto had not remained ignorant of the land's history. Since he was going to live in this country, he made an effort in learning about the land, at least whatever he could get from Ainara. Most of them had been about demon culture though he was also able to learn about the current Lords and the some other important news that managed to make its way into the forest, one of which was the fall of Naraku.

"But there is no way we can ask of him. Especially now that he has been appointed as the Heir of the West," The old spider reasoned. They would either need an invitation or send a request, both of which are impossible since they were not of noble standing. They are not even under the rule of the West. Silkwood, in all its glory, was located on the edges of the East on the foot of a mountain.

Suddenly, Masahide's head shot up with a large grin on his face. He clasped his hands together rubbing them while releasing a low rumbling laugh.

"What's gotten into you?" Tsuyuki asked raising an eyebrow at her mate.

"We can't ask for a request to see the Heir of the West of course, but we can always visit the Lord of the East."He grinned while the others listened attentively.

Looks of understanding filled the faces of Tsuyuki and Ainara but Naruto failed to see how it was important. "And how does seeing Lord Kouga fit in all of this?"

"Because Lord Kouga and Lord Inuyasha happen to be friends... in a way." Masahide finished with a large grin.

"Oh..." Naruto said dumbly.

"There is no guarantee that Lord Kouga can accommodate our request of course, but it's worth a shot," The dragon added.

Naruto though had new worries that popped into his mind. Lord Kouga was after all the Lord of the East and not just some random guy. "And how exactly can we meet Lord Kouga? It's not like we can just go in there without warning right?"

"Oh don't worry about that kid. Just leave that to me," Answered Masahide with a grin.

Not entirely understanding and very skeptical, the blond turned to Tsuyuki with an eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Masahide and Lord Kouga are on friendly terms," Tsuyuki answered at his silent question.

The dragon had met the Lord on a gathering when they were still young and unmated. Both found solace in each other as they were brought to the gathering by their parents against their will. Masahide was quite an easy-going youngster harboring no interest in formal, uptight gatherings, a trait which he shared with the young Lord Kouga. They ended up spending the rest of the event with each others company much to the ire and amusement of their parents.

"Mama! I'm hungry!" Young Eijiro shouted in his small voice breaking the four's thoughts and concentration. They haven't had their breakfast yet, Naruto's human form seemed more important at that time.

Ainara laughed and smoothed the toddler's locks, " The young one proves a point. Come, we must eat. We shall decide the details later,"

"Come on Eijiro," Tsuyuki said and finally relieved Naruto of the toddler. She head straight to the kitchens with her mate following behind her.

Naruto started to follow them but was stopped when a gentle hand landed on his shoulder.

"Baabaa?"

"Naruto-kun," She started once she was sure the two were out of earshot "You know with this upcoming journey, they must know who you are. Why you are a half-demon,"

Naruto sighed and stared in the direction of the two, "I know baabaa. I'll tell them,"

* * *

"Naruto-kun are you alright?" Tsuyuki asked eyeing the blond who was picking at his food.

Naruto looked at her and replied, "Yes, of course,"

"If you say so," She replied skeptically and did not even attempt to hide it from her voice.

Naruto went back to his cooked meat. Masahide had taken down a deer for their breakfast today and Naruto had taken it upon himself to cook the meat seeing that he was a human for the time being. The aroma of cooking meat had wafted into the kitchen with the full demons scrunching up their noses at the smell. While it did not smell that bad, it was a foreign scent as they normally consume their meat raw. Naruto was thankful that they were understanding of this new development and did not bother much about his change. Despite this, he was anxious about telling his story to the couple. He knows he probably would not be judged for it but still, it did not change the fact that he felt skittish about sharing the information.

Naruto inhaled a deep breath and finally said' "I have something to tell you guys,"

"Now?" Masahide asked ridiculously who was in the middle of putting a piece of meat in his mouth.

"Yes? I feel like I might chicken out..."

Tsuyuki sensed the seriousness of the request, "Alright."

"Okay," Naruto took a breath. "Please try not to interrupt me."

"No promises kid," Masahide grinned, "OW!" He rubbed an arm that was swatted by his mate.

"Go ahead Naruto," She said.

"Alright. The thing is... I'm not entirely like Lord Inuyasha. I was not born a hanyou." Naruto looked at the expression on Tsuyuki and Masahide's faces. Aside from the obvious surprise, not one word passed from their lips so he took that as a sign to continue.

"I merged with a demon. He was called Kurama and it all started when I was a baby. Perhaps it would be easier if I started from the fact that I am not from this land,"

"Hidden by this cottage, is a separate land where I came from where humans lived in plenty of numbers, some of them wielding chakra. Those who wield chakra train to be Ninja and they were able to manipulate the elements into various purposes because of it. The only demons in existence are numbered. One of them, Kurama, attacked he village where I was born. My father was the leader of that village and in order to protect his people, he sealed the demon inside me in exchange for his own life. Both of my parents died that night with my father wishing that I will be seen as a hero for keeping the beast at bay."

"That did not happen. I grew up hated and ostracized by the village but I did not give up. I thought if I gave it my all, then they will eventually see my worth. Well, that did not happen as well."

"We were on a mission. A ninja of our village had decided on siding with a missing nin - ninjas who were labeled criminals because of their actions. He was just our age and the village leader ordered for his retrieval. He was part of this 'prestigious' clan in the village you see and it did not hurt that he was 'my friend'. We did not come unscathed but I managed to retrieve him.." Naruto frowned.

"But they blamed me, told me I had nearly killed their 'precious' ninja. The villagers demanded that I leave and never come back with one of 'my friends' doing nothing to stop their insults."

"So I left and travelled. Of course the village leader who later found out about it ordered ninjas to bring me back."

"One time, Kurama talked to me and told me that we could merge in order to hide better from my pursuers. I agreed."

"I lived as a half-demon from then on' Met some friends who did not care about my condition and eventually found this place. Seeing that I was happy here being free to be who I am, my friends let me leave and stay as well as guarding the gateway to those lands." Naruto finished.

The blond looked at Tsuyuki and Masahide. The two were still and quiet and the only noise in the air was from Eijiro who was finishing up his own small share of meat and berries.

"Well?" Naruto asked.

"Well..." Masahide scratched his head. "That was quite a story."

Like a breeze, the quiet and serious air in the table went away with the dragon's statement.

"Certainly," Tsuyuki chuckled.

Naruto sighed in relief. He did not know what he was being nervous for exactly.

"This would definitely be important later if we end up talking to Lord Inuya-" A low grumbling interrupted Tsuyuki's statement.

The three demons looked at Naruto who was sheepishly scratching the back of his head.

Masahide laughed, "All right, time for the human to eat!"

Soon enough, all of them were laughing at Naruto's predicament.


End file.
